danger Posts

On Saturday, February 25, 2017, customers in Baie Verte and and surrounding areas experienced an outage as a result of a tree falling into a transmission line. This caused loss of power to our entire Seal Cove Substation, leaving approximately 1,000 customers without power for about 3.5 hours. The tree made contact with the energized line as a result of an individual cutting trees around his cabin.

This incident could have resulted in severe injury or even death for the individual cutting the trees as well as anyone who may have been in close proximity. It is also an extremely dangerous situation for our employees who must visit the site to make repairs. Our first concern is, and always will be, the safety of our employees, customers, contractors and the public.

We’re only two months into 2017 and we’ve already had three incidents involving individuals cutting trees that have fallen into power lines.

Trimming trees around power lines should only be attempted by trained professionals. Serious injuries and even fatalities have occurred when untrained individuals attempt to do this work themselves. Each tree trimmer working for Newfoundland Power is an experienced, trained professional. Tree trimming is carried out in the immediate vicinity of energized high voltage power lines and only by qualified personnel.

It is important to remember that water and electricity DO NOT mix. If you find yourself in the unfortunate circumstance of having water in your home or business, it is important to think before you act. We know you are in a hurry to get things back to normal, but if water levels have risen to the level of baseboard heaters or electricity outlets, it’s possible the water is energized and potentially lethal. Water could also come through your electrical panel. If you find yourself in any of these circumstances – STAY AWAY!

The first thing you should do if you are concerned water may have interacted with an electrical source in your home or business is to SHUT OFF POWER. UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES should you make contact with water in order to attempt to shut off power. To guarantee there is no power running through your home, power must be disconnected through your meter. DO NOT ATTEMPT TO DO THIS YOURSELF. A certified electrician can help, or you can call us at 1-800-474-5711. When in doubt…reach out, we are here to help.

It is also important to be smart outside of your home. After storms, high winds may have caused downed power lines and trees falling into lines. Always assume downed lines are energized. Electricity and water is just as dangerous outside as it is inside. Be vigilant and look for downed lines. If you find one STAY AWAY and call us immediately. For more information about downed lines visit http://www.newfoundlandpower.com/ElectricalSafety/DownedPowerLines/Default.aspx

THINK SAFE. LIVE SAFE.

John Curran
Manager, Safety and Environment

Newfoundland Power

For approximately 130 years, we have provided customers with safe, reliable electricity in the most cost-efficient manner possible and now we’re happy to provide you with the latest news in these areas on our blog.